Eternal peace in the soul
by yukifangurl31295
Summary: The Seigaku Regulars were invited by Atobe to have a self-training tennis camp along with other schools for a whole month. Unable to decline, everyone started packing for the said gathering.. Not knowing,that it will be the scariest event of their lives..
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: **_The Seiagku regulars were invited by Atobe Keigo to have a self-training tennis camp along with other schools. Unable to decline, everyone started packing for the said event. Little did they know, it will be one of the scariest events of their lives . . ._

**Settings**_**: **_One of Atobe's private Tennis training land.

**A/N: **I edited the first chapter so it's easier to understand and better in grammar!

* * *

**Chapter 1**

A cold wind blew as the Seigaku regulars stepped out of the tour bus personally sent by Atobe. The personal tour bus was one of the many reasons why they couldn't decline the opportunity of a FREE self-training camp from the said Hyotei king. Everyone was excited about the trip and the training camp itself… Everyone, except Ryoma.

"Tch." Ryoma muttered darkly as he drank his can of ponta.

"Saa… Echizen, don't tell me you're still upset about coming here." Fuji said amusedly as he looked at the young prodigy. Ryoma tugged at his cap, irritated while Momo and Eiji laughed.

"Don't tell me you're scared Echizen!" Momo chided. "What happened to that cocky confidence of yours?"

Ryoma glared at his supposed best friend but said nothing.

"Momo." Oishi scolded. "Leave Echizen alone."

"Don't worry ochibi! We'll protect you!" Eiji added energetically as he glomped the poor boy.

"Don't let your guard down." Tezuka said sternly.

"Fssssshhhh." Kaidoh hissed.

"Hm." Inui said scribbling furiously on his notebook.

"I'll carry the bags everyone." Taka shouted out.

"Thanks sempai!" Momo shouted as he handed his bag to Kawamura.

"Tch, lazy peach." Kaidoh whispered. A vein popped on Momoshiro's head.

"What was that you stupid snake?" Momo shouted glaring at Kaidoh. Kaidoh glared back with equal venom.

"Momoshiro! Kaidoh!" Oishi scolded. Kaidoh and Momo kept glaring.

"30 laps around the court." Tezuka said quietly but Momo and Kaidoh still heard it.

"B-but Captain-!"

"50 laps…" Momoshiro shut up at that, even Kaidoh turned away.

"Let's go inside." Tezuka said. Eiji cheered happily while Oishi smiled. Fuji chuckled and Kawamura carried the bags. They left Ryoma standing at the gate.

"I have a bad feeling…" Ryoma muttered before throwing his can on a nearby trash can and following his seniors.

* * *

Ryoma and the other regulars arrived at their assigned dorm/building. Since Atobe was as rich as he is, he assigned each school their own dorm or building of their own. Each dormitory had it's own private tennis court to avoid any fights between the school during practice. The biggest of all dormitories was called the Main building where, when summoned, all the schools will head to. No excuses (since Atobe was the one who sponsored the trip). They were allowed to stay in their dorms any time they want in one condition: when it was time to eat everyone has to gather in the main building.

Everyone already arrived at their assigned dorm and began unpacking. Ryoma wanted to unpack later so he stepped out of the dormitory to get some fresh air and to drink a newly bought ponta. Since it was getting dark, Ryoma could not see where he was walking to and accidentally stumbled and let go of his drink. His can of ponta spilled and Ryoma frowned as he tried to retrieve the can to throw it in the garbage. But he froze when he suddenly felt the hair on the back of his neck stand.

"Hey! You shouldn't litter!" Someone suddenly shouted. Ryoma turned around warily. A girl his age stepped out from behind a tree. Since it was dark Ryoma could not see her face, he could only notice her pale complexion.

"Hey! Are you listening to me?" The girl said crossing her arms. Ryoma pulled his cap down in response.

Seeing as Ryoma won't probably respond the girl bent down and picked up the can of ponta. Afterwards she approached the tennis prince and gave it to him.

"Here." She said handing it to him. Ryoma took it and shivered when her fingers brushed against his. Ryoma eyed the girl suspiciously. "Hey, your knee is scraped." She added while pointing at Ryoma's knee. The cocky prince looked down and sure enough he saw the small injury on his knee. How did that get there?

Ryoma was about to say something witty but when he looked up the girl was gone. A slightly strong wind blew causing Ryoma to hold onto his hat to prevent it from flying away.

"What a weird girl…" He murmured as he shivered from the cold breeze. He turned around and proceeded to the dorm.

* * *

Once he was inside, Eiji glomped Ryoma from out of nowhere. "Neh! Ochibi! We heard you talking to a girl, nya!" Eiji said as cheerful as always. Ryoma tried to wiggle out of his sempai's hold but unfortunately for him, that's when Eiji noticed Ryoma's injury . . . (He has good eyes you know)

"Nya! You're hurt! Ochibi's injured!" Eiji shouted as he let go and examined his kouhai's small injury.

"Sempai, be quiet!" Ryoma said trying to calm his overactive sempai. But it was too late, once Oishi heard it.

"Echizen? What happened? Are you alright?" Oishi began frantically as he went out of his room after hearing Eiji's outburst.

"I'm fine sempai, it's just a scratch. I'll just go and get the first aid kit." He said while trying to leave his sempais' worried gazes. But then Tezuka suddenly appeared in front of Ryoma, stopping him.

"You should be more careful Echizen" Tezuka said, crossing his arms. "As punishment, you'll have to skip practice tomorrow to give time for your leg to heal."

And then here comes Fuji . . .

"Saa…he's right. After all he can't let you run laps with that leg." Fuji said while chuckling.

"But, buchou (captain)! It's only a scratch!" Ryoma said glaring slightly.

"A scratch?" Oishi said worriedly. "Echizen its swelling."

Ryoma glanced at Oishi. "No it's not."

"Yes it is, nya." Eiji said as he bent down and poked Ryoma's leg. Ryoma winced slightly and looked down at his leg. It really was swelling. Strange.

"It's your fault for being reckless Echizen." Tezuka said, leaving no room for arguments. Truthfully, Ryoma had no arguments left. So he chose to tug his cap to hide his irritation.

"Hai. I'm going to my room, then." Ryoma said with a monotone voice.

"What about dinner?" Momo asked incredulously as he made his way to the group, he had secretly been listening in on the conversation.

"I'm not hungry." Was Ryoma's simple answer, as he left before they could oppose. Ryoma made his way to his room and sighed. Everyone had their own room, and Ryoma couldn't help but be thankful for that.

When his room was in view he entered it and locked the door. He went to the bathroom to clean his wound and apply it with ointment before wrapping it up in bandages. Then suddenly someone knocked on his door. It was Kawamura.

"Echizen? Are you sure you don't want to go to dinner?" he asked cautiously.

"Yadda (Don't wanna)" came the reply of our young freshman. Thus, Kawamura left disappointed. He knew Ryoma would say that, but there was no harm in trying right?

_Why does Tezuka have to be so hard on him? _Kawamura thought.

* * *

Ryoma slumped on his bed tiredly, carefully not trying to make his knee hurt even more. Ryoma reached out towards his luggage and rummaged through it. His mother packed him some horror stories to read for entertainment. With nothing to do Ryoma started to read…

Several minute later, someone knocked on his door. Ryoma grunted in annoyance. He didn't like it when people disturbed him when he was reading. However the person on the other side was persistent and knocked again.

"I told you. I don't want to go to dinner." He said groggily as placed a pillow on his face..

"Hey! It's me! Did you cover up your wound already?" said a familiar voice.

Ryoma opened the door and looked at the intruder curiously. "Who are you?" He asked when he saw the girl.

"We met earlier, remember? You're the kid who was littering." She said rolling her eyes. Ryoma blinked twice before recognition came to him.

"Oh." Ryoma said looking at the girl. Suddenly a question snapped into his mind as he raised suspicious eyebrow. "How did you know I was here?"

The girl looked at him with a serious gaze. "I saw you come here while I was passing by. It took time for me to remember you. . ."

There was silence. Ryoma looked at the girl. There was something strange about her that he could not pin point. But what? Was it because of her paleness? I mean no person could possibly be so pale right? The only people who could be as pale as that were…

Dead ones…

Then the girl clapped her hands together as though remembering something, at the same time she interrupted Ryoma from his thoughts.

"Oh! That's right… I haven't introduced myself!" She said bowing a little. "I'm Michiro Sakuriji."

"Echizen Ryoma." Ryoma said shrugging nonchalantly. The girl frowned.

"Okay, now back to business. I heard you haven't had dinner?" She said smiling.

Ryoma's eyebrow twitched. Why does she remind him of Fuji-sempai? Ryoma just tugged at his cap. "I'm not hungry." He said simply. He silently wished the girl wasn't going to glomp on him, like another certain red-headed sempai of his. But instead Michiro gave him a stern look. Ryoma shivered a bit. Now, that was the same look the captain gave him earlier. Had the girl been watching them?

"Come on… there's a vending machine nearby we could get a light dinner or something." She said persistently. Ryoma pursed his lips. He had another bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Yadda." He said finally.

* * *

Moments later, Ryoma found himself walking with the girl to the back of the building where there were vending machines. He sure was having a bad day. The girl skipped happily by his side.

"Saa…don't you think this place is scary?" She asked as he looked at him.

"Why would you say that?" Ryoma asked while picking his favorite drink. Ponta, of course.

"Well, it's scary… since…" She hesitated.

_Great._ Ryoma thought. _Now she was acting like Oishi sempai and Kawamura-sempai_. (Maybe he should give her a racket so she can go to burning mode).

"Since, what?" Ryoma said acting as cool as ever.

"Since … the land on the back of the dormitory is a cementary." She said and for a moment her eyes went blank. Ryoma felt the hair on the back of his neck standing up. He rubbed his neck in frustration. Uh-oh… not good

* * *

Meanwhile at dinner. . .

"Ah . . . Tezuka, where's the cocky brat, eh?" Atobe asked as he approached the Seigaku regulars.

"Gomen, Atobe but he didn't want to come." Oishi said answering in Tezuka's stead.

Then Gakuto appeared after hearing the conversation. "Eh? You left the kid alone?" he said bewildered as though they committed a crime.

Inui joined in the conversation. "Yes. Why? What's wrong?" He asked when he saw the expressions they were giving them. Gakuto and Atobe merely exchanged looks.

* * *

"Hahaha…" The girl laughed while touching Ryoma's shoulder. He shivered . . . her hands were colder than before. "You're hard to scare…" She added while smiling but then her face darkened

"However, keep in mind what I told you, boy…" She said before her expression vanished and she waved at him. "Oops! Look at the time! I have to go now! See you soon! And please . . . _be careful"_

Ryoma shuddered. He felt like the last two words she said had a hidden meaning into them. However before he could ask, she already vanished. Again.

Ryoma sighed as he kicked a nearby rock. Suddenly he heard running footsteps.

Ryoma threw his can of ponta on a trashcan and went to see who it was . . .

"Ochibi!" Apparently a glomp greeted him, meaning only one thing…

"Sempai, I can't breath." Ryoma said casually as though he was talking in the phone. Thankfully, Oishi came to his rescue.

"Why are you here?" Ryoma asked with a raised eyebrow when Eiji finally let go.

"Fsshh… We got worried and came here immediately after eating." Kaido said.

Ryoma sighed and shrugged…Then he went back inside the building ignoring the "Oi! Echizen!" "Echizen!" calls.

* * *

The next day...

Ryoma reluctantly followed his sempais to the main building's court. They didn't trust him alone, but he was still not allowed to join practice. It was a general practice, all the schools were there.

Ryoma was deeply engrossed on the book he was reading that he did not notice the worried looks his sempais were giving him.

"Saa…I didn't know Echizen likes horror stories." Fuji said interested at this new information.

"That's because he doesn't…" Inui said while checking his data. "There is no record of Echizen liking anything else other than tennis, ponta, and his cat." He said with glasses gleaming.

At the Hyotei's side Gakuto was watching the freshman. "Neh, Atobe, something's wrong with the kid!" Gakuto said while jumping on a trampoline.

Atobe ignored Gakuto and continued looking at a building not far away. That is until . . .

"Neh, Monkey King." Atobe turned around and saw Ryoma. He smirked.

"What is it, brat?" he asked impatiently.

"Do you know a Michiro Sakuriji?" Ryoma asked while tugging at his cap.

"Who?" asked Atobe a bit interested and suspicious.

"Michiro Sakuriji, same age as me. She told me there's a cemetery behind our dorm." The prince of tennis said, a bit impatient.

There was an awkward silence while the Seigaku regulars watched Atobe's face change from a confused look to a blank one.

"Ore-sama shall show you the cemetery." Ryoma looked at Atobe. What? He didn't ask to be shown to the cemetery. But Ryoma complied anyway.

"Hm." Was all he uttered. The other regulars decided to follow since they wanted to know what was going on.

* * *

"No one told me there was a cemetery here! Nya!" Eiji wailed as he looked around at the gravestones surrounding him. "It's uncomfortable to have a cemetery on your backyard but not know about it, nya!" The others silently agreed with him as they looked around too. Kaidoh was trying hard to push down his fear.

_THUD!_

The Seigaku regulars turned around to see the source of the noise. That's when they saw Ryoma kneeling in front of a gravestone with his eyes slightly wide at what he was seeing. They went to Ryoma's side and what they saw shocked them as well although they don't know why. There, engraved on a gravestone were the following words:

_**R.I.P.**_

_Michiro Sakuriji _

_(April 5, 1850- November 1, 1862)_

_**May she eternally rest in peace… **_

_**Forever…**_

_**

* * *

**_

The girl Ryoma was talking to last night was dead... So what does that mean exactly?_**  
**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary: **_The Seiagku regulars were invited by Atobe Keigo to have a self-training tennis camp along with other schools. Unable to decline, everyone started packing for the said event. Little did they know, it will be one of the scariest events of their lives . . ._

**Settings**_**: **_One of Atobe's private Tennis training land.

**A/N: **Edit of Chapter 2 is done! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 2**

After practice… Everyone went back to their dorms to rest. Everyone, except Seigaku's regulars who were having a meeting in their dorm. The general tennis practice finished late and everyone was tired… However there was an issue that was to be resolved and no one would be able to sleep peacefully until it was figured out. So right now, late in the evening the nine regulars sat in the main lobby of their room to begin the discussion.

"Nya! No one told us our dormitory had a cemetery!" Eiji wailed at everyone. Oishi tries to calm his upset partner.

"Calm down Eiji." Oishi said. "It's not a big deal. Atobe said so himself. He didn't mention the cemetery because he didn't want to cause unnecessary stress."

As Oishi comforted Eiji, everyone else turned to look at their youngest member.

"Are you sure you weren't imagining it Echizen?" Momo asked, suspicious. He wasn't sure if he should believe what the young prodigy was saying. After all, by believing in what Ryoma was saying it meant he also believed in the existence of … -gulp- ghosts!

Ryoma, who had recovered from the shock, merely nodded.

"It's not that I don't believe you Echizen. It's just . . . A girl who's supposed to be dead is alive?" Kawamura said unbelievingly. "Maybe she just coincidentally had the same name as the girl in the gravestone."

"Well explain to me then why she keeps vanishing into thin air when I'm about to ask her something." Ryoma said softly. "Or why the monkey king said that there was no little girl living in this camp since it was a private land? Or why did the girl I was talking to look exactly the same as the one who owned the grave?" (Atobe showed them a picture of her)

Kawamura opened his mouth but he had nothing to say so he closed it instead.

"Saa… Taka-san, I think…What Echizen has been trying to say is that the girl's ghost is haunting this dorm." Fuji said a bit serious. Ryoma remembered how the girl would just vanish and would suddenly appear. He remembered her cold touch and unnaturally pale skin. Ryoma shivered.

Suddenly the grand father clock in the lobby rang. It was 2:00 in the morning. Fuji began to chuckle.

"Hey guys…" Fuji said smiling creepily. Kaidoh visibly shivered in fright. "Did you know that 2:00 am or 3:00 am is known as the devil's hour in other countries? It is said that most ghosts and demons wander around at this time."

Everyone felt cold air pass over them and they shivered. Fuji chuckled.

"That's enough Fuji." Tezuka said sternly. Eiji nodded behind him. Fuji chuckled again.

"Fuji-sempai!" Momo said frowning. "Stop scaring us like that!"

"Fssssssssshhhhhhhhh." Kaidoh hissed, his hiss longer than it normally was. Kawamura was covering his ears with his hands.

"O-okay everyone, it's time to sleep." Oishi said, also a bit shaken by what Fuji said. "We will-" Oishi's words were interrupted when suddenly the lights turned off. Eiji wailed again. Kaidoh let out a small sound of fright.

"Everyone, calm down." Tezuka said sternly.

In the silent darkness all they heard was the silent chiming of the grandfather clock. Everyone gulped as they listened to the ticking of the old clock.

_Tick…Tock…Tick… Tock…_

Then Ryoma, broke the silence. "After telling me that the dorm was a cemetery…she also told me something else."

The others felt something cold all of a sudden.

"Wh-what was it?" Inui said getting a bit nervous too, but for the sake of data he would ask anything.

"She said… That for some strange reason…" Ryoma began silently. The other had to strain their ears to hear him. "The lights in the dorm would mysteriously turn off every 2:00 am."

There was a horrified silence.

_Tick…Tock…Tick…Tock…_

"Fsshh . . .D-don't e-even j-joke-!" Kaidoh began but suddenly a loud clanging interrupted him, making him jump in fright.

"It's just the clock mamushi!" Momo said as he tried to calm his fellow classmate. "Geez!"

"I-I knew that! Stupid peach!" Kaidoh retorted. And once again, everyone was silent.

_Tick… Tock…Tick…Tock…_

"Everyone…" Fuji began softly.

"What is it F-Fujiko?" Eiji asked stuttering he felt cold air touch the nape of his neck. Fuji was probably trying to scare them again. Hopefully.

"Can you hear that?" Fuji asked seriously.

"W-wha-?"

"Shhh! Listen!" Fuji said shushing Eiji.

_Tick…Tock…Tick…Tock…_

"It's just the clock Fuji…" Kawamura said a bit relieved. For a moment there he thought Fuji heard something else.

"No! Listen more closely!" Fuji said, irritated this time.

_Tick…Tock…Tick…Tock…_

"I don't…-" But Kawamura was cut off when suddenly, he heard it too…

_Drip…Drop…Drip…Drop…_

"What is that?" Oishi asked. "The faucet? Did any of you guys leave the faucet open?"

"No… I don't think so…" Momo said earnestly.

"Oishi-sempai…" Ryoma said. Everyone turned to look at the freshman. Even in the dark they could tell that the hat was shadowing Ryoma's eyes. "I don't think… that the sound came from the faucet."

_Drip…Drop…Drip…Drop…_

"What makes you say that, Echizen?" Inui asked curiously.

_Drip… Drop…Drip…Drop…_

"B-because…" Ryoma began. "The sound it's…-"

"…getting nearer." Tezuka finished. There was an awkward silence before it was suddenly broken again by an unknown scream:

_**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!**_

An ear-piercing scream echoed through out the halls of the Seigaku dormitory and into the dark night… What would become of our regulars now?


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary: **_The Seiagku regulars were invited by Atobe Keigo to have a self-training tennis camp along with other schools. Unable to decline, everyone started packing for the said event. Little did they know, it will be one of the scariest events of their lives . . ._

**Settings**_**: **_One of Atobe's private Tennis training lands.

**A/N: **EDIT of the third chapter done! Please enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Everyone screamed as well as there was panic and uproar in the dark dormitory.

"IT'S GOING TO GET US!" Kaidoh shouted at the top of his lungs as he tried to run to the exit. Thankfully, Fuji caught him before he got separated from them.

"NYAAAAA! I DON'T WANNA DIE!" Eiji screamed as he clung to Oishi, shivering. "I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE NYAA!"

"Itte!" Ryoma groaned as Kawamura fell on top of him in dead faint. Inui was shaking as he took out a flashlight from his pocket but it did not seem to work.

"AAAAHHHHHHHH!" Momo screamed unable to form proper words due to fright.

"E-Eiji c-calm d-down." Oishi said also shivering in fright. "Tezuka do something."

Tezuka snapped out of his shock and cleared his throat as he tried to regain composure. He looked at the hardly visible and scared faces of his teammates.

"SILENCE." The almighty captain of Seigaku said mustering authority in his voice. Everyone became quiet at once. The only sounds that were heard were their rapid breathings and the creepy ticking of the grandfather clock.

The silence went on for several minutes and when everyone slowly began to calm down they began to talk one by one.

"W-what was that?" Kaidoh asked nervously. He gulped as he tried to suppress his fear. He looked around cautiously as he breathed heavily. No one answered Kaidoh's question since no one knew what to say in this situation.

"Everyone, we should check that out." Tezuka said sternly. He tried to scrutinize the surroundings checking for anything strange in the dark. Everyone did the same as the fear and shock they experienced slowly ebbed away.

"Echizen?" Momo asked uncertainly as he noticed the frozen figure of the freshman. He was the only one not moving in the dark

"T-There…" Ryoma said fearfully pointing towards something. Seeing the trembling fingers of the freshman, everyone turned to look at what Ryoma was pointing at.

A dark mass seemed to hang suspended in mid air as everyone stepped closer to see what it was. Suddenly thunder lit up the dark dormitory and in that few seconds everyone was able to clearly see what it was that hang on the spot.

_It _was a girl. And the girl seemed to be dead. Seeing as a rope hung on her neck and blood trickled down her lifeless face.

At first there was a tensed silence in the air as everyone absorbed the image they saw and then…

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Kaidoh screamed reacting first among his teammates.

"RRUUNNN! NYAAAA!" Eiji screamed as well while flailing his arms. Everyone started running around and splitting up in the process.

Momo was dragging the stunned Ryoma as the two of them ran upstairs and hid in Momoshiro's room. They panted tiredly while Momo slumped on the bed.

"That was her…" Ryoma mumbled tiredly as his cap covered his eyes.

"Huh? Who? That girl we saw dead a while ago?" Momo said his eyes widening. "That was your ghost friend?"

Ryoma just nodded silently. The 2nd year tennis power house gulped.

"Echizen, is there anything else that girl told you about this dorm?" Momoshiro asked urgently. He was secretly hoping that whatever the girl told Ryoma would help them survive this scary night… Ryoma visibly hesitated before he began speaking.

"Well she just told me some ghost stories like how a boy . . . was found dead on one of the rooms here." Ryoma said absent-mindedly. "No one knew if it was murder or suicide. But she said it was probably murder."

"Eh?" Momoshiro said. "Why?"

"It's because every single night the boy would be heard asking for help." Ryoma said frowning. "Why would he be asking for help if he killed himself?"

There was silence between them.

"But hey, did she tell you which room that boy haunts?" Momo asked. "Is it in my room?" Momo asked scared all of a sudden.

"I don't think so." Ryoma said slowly. "But I don't know which room it was though."

There was another silence.

"I wonder whose room it was…" Momo asked quietly.

* * *

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Kaidoh's scream echoed throughout the halls as he tried his best to get out of his room.

_Because… _

Right behind the snake player was a boy with a bloody face and blood shot eyes reaching out to him, asking for help.

"Help…Help… _Help_ _me_…" Came the pitiful voice of the injured boy. He grabbed Kaidoh and then the piteous face grinned evilly . . .

"I'll never let you go, until you help me…" The boy said with a hoarse voice as blood trickled down his chin...

"NOO! NOO! NO!" Kaidoh said grabbing the doorknob.

He was almost there…

Just a bit more…

And then…

There was silence . . .

* * *

Meanwhile…

Inui was walking around the dorm with a flashlight. Thankfully, it seemed to finally be working.

However, as the data man of Seigaku walked through the dark hallways he suddenly felt someone following him; he looked behind… there was no one. He kept walking. He heard footsteps echoing alongside his own. He looked again… no one was there.

"Data…Someone's following. No one's behind. Hmm . . ." Inui said thoughtfully. He might seem calm to you but if you looked closely you could see his hands shaking violently.

He continued walking…This time he felt the footsteps closer. He looked behind again, no one…He looked forward too, no one.

But the footsteps continued…Then he heard dripping of blood. He looked behind nothing. However, Inui's hands were shaking so badly that he dropped his flash light. But as Inui bent down to retrieve it…

He sees a pair of feet with no body!

Inui abandons the flashlight as he began running, panic rising in him as he felt the pair of decapitated feet coming closer…and closer… _and closer_…

However just as Inui nears the exit he trips and then…

* * *

Meanwhile…

Fuji and Tezuka were searching every room, when Fuji taps Tezuka's back. Tezuka looks behind, and…

"Boo!" Fuji said with a mask that came from out of nowhere.

"That's not funny, Fuji." Tezuka said unblinkingly.

"Saa…you're no fun Tezuka." Fuji said with a chuckle. Tezuka rubbed his head tiredly Good thing Fuji was with him instead of with the others, or else the others would have gotten heart attacks already. And so with that they continued to look…

"Ah…Tezuka by the way, what are we looking for?" Fuji asked breaking the silence.

There was silence.

"Let's go, Fuji." Tezuka said seriously.

"He just remembered we were running for our lives." Fuji said chuckling again as he followed the serious captain.

While they were walking, Tezuka felt another tap on his shoulder.

"What is it this time, Fuji?" Tezuka asked not bothering to look back this time. But then Tezuka suddenly realized that Fuji went ahead because at that moment Fuji suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Saa…Did you call me Tezuka?" Fuji said turning around to face the Seigaku captain.

"Fuji you…" Tezuka froze, if that wasn't Fuji, then…He looked behind him and saw…

A woman who seemed to be pregnant and bleeding.

"HEELLPP MEEE!" the woman screeched as she raised a rotting hand towards the two. Fuji and Tezuka stepped back in surprise and horror.

"Saa…Tezuka… I think we should be running." Fuji said his eyes opening seriously as his voice trembled ever-so slightly. Tezuka only nodded as they dashed away…

_**End of Chapter**_


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: **Edit Chapter 4 is done! :D

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Meanwhile, Taka-san ran out of the building panting crazily. His only thoughts were to get some help. He knew that he wouldn't be able to find the members in that dark building so he decided to run towards Hyotei's dorm, they are after all the hosts. He arrived there, minutes later…

"Ah, Kawamura-san" Atobe greeted the powerhouse player as he entered their 'territory'. "Ore-sama has no time at the moment, so if you have something to tell us, speak out immediately." The Hyotei King said impatiently as he saw the visitor that disturbed his beauty sleep.

"A-Atobe-san … we need –ha-your… help. E-Everyone is… screaming… blood… d-dead girl…" Kawamura said panting heavily before collapsing into a dead faint.

"O-oi! Kawamura-san! Get a hold of yourself! Oi!" Gakuto said as he bent down to check on the power house tennis player. Shishido grabbed Gakuto's shoulder and shook his head.

"We should go to Seigaku's dorm first, it seems something's wrong." Shishido said seriously.

"What about, Kawamura-san?" Choutaru asked worriedly as he looked at the unconscious tennis player.

"Let's just leave him here for awhile. It seems we have more important things to worry about." Atobe said as he contemplated on what Kawamura said. "Let's go!"

"Usu." Kabaji said as he followed. They all rode in a mini golf car towards Seigaku's building.

"I hope nothing bad happened…" Choutaru murmured and the other members were grave with silence.

When the Hyotei team arrived, they noticed that the Seigaku dorm's lights were on. They rushed inside calling out the names of random Seigaku player, but no one greeted them at the front hall. Deciding that the members probably couldn't hear them they wanted to start searching the dorm but that's when they suddenly, they saw a girl at the end of the hall. When Hiyoshi was about to call her the girl ran off.

"Wait…" Hiyoshi said as he tried to stop the unknown girl. They decided to follow the girl who kept running off until they arrived at the door with an exit sign. They're eyes widened when they saw Seigaku's data collector sprawled on the floor.

"Inui-san!" Choutaru said surprised. Shishido immediately went to the data collector's side. Choutaru followed. "Is he alright?" He asked anxiously.

Shishido felt Inui's pulse and sighed. "He's fine." He said checking the data man for any injuries. Then they suddenly heard running footsteps.

"Who's there, nya!" Came the unmistakable voice of Eiji.

"Hello?" Came another voice which was undoubtedly Oishi's.

"Kikumaru-san! Oishi-san! It's us!" Gakuto said shouting. The golden pair immediately and ran up to the sound of the familiar voices, breathing heavily.

"What happened to you? Ore-sama, demands an answer." Atobe said, raising an eyebrow curiously. Eiji wiped his forehead while Oishi began explaining.

"When the lights turned off, we heard the sounds of something _dripping_. We got very nervous and realized that the dripping sound was coming closer…" Oishi said as he gulped.

"And ochibi-chan was the one who pointed that out…" Eiji added to his partner's statement while doing a cute impression of Ryoma by taking Shishido's cap.

"We never really got to see what caused the sound because everyone suddenly got panicky and all of us got separated." Oishi said looking around worriedly, Eiji gulped because he actually _saw_ what the others saw. Oishi was spared because he was dragged off by his partner before he could see anything. "I hope the others are alright!"

"I see. Kabaji, take Inui to one of the rooms and stay with him for a while."

"W-Wha-? What happened to Inui?" Eiji wailed when he saw the data collector. The Hyotei team moved aside, giving them a view of the sprawled and unconscious Seigaku third year, His eyes widened and he clung to Oishi who was also shocked.

Atobe ignored them as he continued to give instructions. "Oishi you stay with Inui too. Kikumaru, come with us." Atobe ordered.

"Usu." Kabaji said nodding as he carried Inui easily.

"I'll get the 1st aid kit." Oishi said as he gently pried the scared Eiji off and then he ran off.

"I'm scared, nya!" Eiji said as he followed Atobe and the others. A few minutes later, everyone started looking again for the other Seigaku regulars, leaving Oishi, and Kabaji to look after Inui. They looked at the rooms, until they arrived at Kaidoh's room. Kikumaru opened the door nervously and saw…

Kaidoh lying on his bed with his eyes opened in shock…

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Gakuto and Eiji screamed at the same time. The rest rushed in the room.

"Quiet down, sempai-tachi…" Choutaru said as he calmed the two and himself down. He was also nervous and scared but what use would shouting be? Shishido approached Kaidoh and took his pulse. His own face was pale from what he had seen.

"He's fine… Just shocked." Shishido said as he looked around for the cause of the shock. Gakuto and Eiji were still shivering in fright near the door.

"I wonder what happened to him…" Hiyoshi said thoughtfully as he also examined the room. Atobe did not answer. Instead, he surveyed the room closely. Moments later, they heard footsteps at the front lounge.

" Shishido-senpai and I, will check it out." Choutaru said as he left while Shishido nodded and followed. Hiyoshi nodded in agreement.

"We'll continue looking for the others …" Hiyoshi said as he thought of who else were left. He looked at the shocked Kaidoh and sighed. _I hope they're in a much better state._


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note: **Editing of this chapter is done ^^

**Chapter 5**

Meanwhile…

Shishido and Choutaro headed to the front lounge and to their surprise they saw the regulars of Rikkaidai looking around curiously.

"Good morning, we heard some noises from our building." Yukimura said with a kind smile as he pointed at a nearby building.

"It woke us up, and we decided to see what was wrong." Sanada said with crossed arms. It was 3 in the morning and apparently, it seems Yukimura (who is as creepy as Fuji) dragged him all the way here just for that.

"Ah, yes. About that… something happened here and it seems some of the Seigaku regulars are missing." Chouatru said smiling back nervously as he slowly began to panic when his words began to sink in.

"And we found two of them. One passed out and one is in shock." Shishido said. He could see the Rikkaidai regulars exchange shocked and worried looks at these remarks. Even though they were rivals with Seigaku they still worry about them seeing as they were friends too.

"Are they alright?" Jackal said as he eyed the seemingly vacant hall of the building. Suddenly he saw a white figure pass by. He quickly blinked in shock and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"They've been in better conditions." Choutaru answered not noticing the discomfort of the other. Then suddenly they heard hurried footsteps going down the stairs. But Atobe and the others were searching on the ground floor. Who could it be? They looked up and saw Fuji and Tezuka emerging from the second floor.

"Saa … We thought we heard voices." Fuji said smiling at the newcomers.

"Ah, Tezuka-san, and Fuji-san…" Yukimura said smiling back at the two. Fuji and Yukimura were looking at each other, smiling while the others sweat dropped. Tezuka nodded at Sanada who nodded back seriously.

"A-Anyway-" Choutaru began but then he was cut off when-

BANG!

CRUSH!

THUD!

Everyone looked at each other before they all ran to the source of the sounds… and when they arrived, they saw Momoshiro on top of Eiji, hugging him while crying tears of joy while Eiji looked like he couldn't breathe.

"What happened?" Tezuka asked his arms crossed and his voice stern.

"Ah… Tezuka you're alright." Atobe said looking up at the Seigaku captain. Fuji turned to look at Gakuto, wanting an explanation.

"So what happened here?" Fuji asked curiously.

"Well, while we were searching for the other Seigaku regulars, we decided to check in this room. Kikumaru decided to knock on the door first, to make sure no ghost was inside" He said rolling his eyes. _What was the use of that anyway?_ He thought to himself.

"As you can see this was the result of his 'action'." Gakuto said. "Poor Hiyoshi…" He added in sympathy as he pointed to Hiyoshi who was lying face flat on the floor with the door on top of him (Eiji being an acrobat managed to dodge the falling door but Hiyoshi wasn't as lucky).

"Baka no Momo, kicked open the door (that was the BANG! Everyone heard) and then it crashed down on Hiyoshi (the CRASH sound they heard) and then when Momoshiro saw Kikumaru he cried with joy and tackled him to the floor with a rib-cracking hug (the THUD)." Gakuto said continuing his story in a bored manner. At this Fuji chuckled, and Eiji looked up at him.

"Help… can't… breathe…" Eiji said before he fell unconscious, with his spirit coming out of his mouth (in a funny anime style).

"O-Oi! Kikumaru-san-sempai!" Choutaru said checking on the red-headed acrobat. At this Fuji chuckled evilly, while Shishido sweat dropped.

"You're one evil guy, Fuji." Shishido said shaking his head. Momo got up and apologized at Eiji for squashing him. He scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Well, now that we found Momoshiro… The only one left is Echizen…" Atobe said with a hand on his chin. Then everyone fell silent. One thought remained in their minds… Where _IS_ Echizen?

Meanwhile, the Seigaku team exchanged wary looks. What could've happened to their young freshman?


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note" **Editing of Chapter 6! FINISHED!

* * *

**Chapter 6**

After searching the whole building for anymore people they may have missed (specifically Ryoma), they all gathered in the huge infirmary room, where Kaidoh and Inui were being taken care of along with an unconscious Eiji.

"We searched every last place in this building!" said an exasperated Shishido, while Choutaru nodded in agreement.

"But we still couldn't find Echizen-kun" Choutaru added. Everyone exchanged looks. This is really getting too dangerous. Something was clearly wrong, and for the sake of everyone in the camp with them, they have to find out what.

"Momo, didn't you say Echizen was with you when all of us got separated?" said a very serious Fuji, his eyes open and staring holes into Momo.

Momo scratched his head in frustration. "Yeah he was, he was even talking with me about the strange stories this 'Michiro person told him… But when the lights turned on he just vanished!" Momo said with both hands on his head. That's when Eiji woke and sat up.

"Ah!" Momo was so surprised by the sudden movement that he fell off his chair. "Eiji-sempai! Don't do that!" He said while getting back up. To everyone's surprise, Eiji's eyes began filling with tears, and he began crying animatedly. Everyone watched in shock as Eiji's body shook with his sobs.

"E-Eiji!" Oishi said in worry as he approached the acrobat. The other-half of the golden pair clinged to the Vice-Captain.

"Ochibi's gone nya! Who am I gonna hug as a teddy bear now!" Eiji cried in frustration. The Hyotei and Rikkaidai regulars (except Atobe, Kabaji, Sanada and Yukimura) sweat dropped. While some of the Seigaku regulars comforted Eiji.

"It'll be alright Eiji. Echizen will show up soon." Oishi said comforting his doubles partner. Then, Eiji stopped crying and sniffled.

"But I- I had a dream…" Everyone's attention went to Eiji as he said this. "What was your dream Kikumaru-san?" Yukimura asked kindly but a bit urgently. He was also curious on what was happening too. Eiji sighed and began telling what his dream was about.

"I was walking down a hallway. It was already night time and I didn't know why I was still awake. Then I heard the sudden chiming of the grandfather clock. It was really creepy! It was as though it was warning me to go back. Then a few minutes after that, I heard the creepy tune of a music box…" Eiji said in a dark tone. "When I was about to run back to my room, I saw ochibi come out of his room! I ran up to him and greeted him happily! I was about to hug him, when suddenly, he began walking away from me. I called out to him, to ask him where he was going…" Eiji paused a moment in his story, and the others waited with bated breaths…

"What happened?" Gakuto asked impatiently.

Eiji pouted, not liking Gakuto's tone. "I tried to follow him, but then I saw ochibi following a girl the same height as him. I was about to call out to him again, but then the girl he was following turned around…" Eiji's breath caught in his throat as his face paled.

"Eiji?" Fuji asked seriously. Oishi patted the red-head's back.

Eiji covered his face as he shivered. "H-Her face-! I-It was… c-covered in blood. It was contorted with rage and anger, and it was slightly rotten too… a-and I think I could see her bones." Eiji said finishing his story with a gulp. Then there was silence at this horrible description.

Fuji decided to break the tension. He looked at Choutaru. "So where's Oshitari-kun, and Jirou-kun?"

Choutaru sweat dropped, but Shishido answered. "Amazingly, Oshitari's still asleep, and of course Jirou is too."

Hiyoshi answered that with one word. "Gekokoujyou"

Meanwhile, at Oshitari's room…

"Something doesn't feel right" Oshitari said yawning, as perceptive as ever. That's when he suddenly heard something fall, he looked around and…

* * *

"Sorry, for disturbing you." Sanada said. "We'll get going-" But Sanada was interrupted when all of them heard a scream coming from Hyotei's building.

Everyone was a bit startled. Who could have that scream belonged to? But the Hyotei regulars knew who it was.

"Oshitari-sempai!" Choutaru said in shock. They all ran to the Hyotei's building leaving Oishi and Kabaji to look after the Seigaku regulars left in the infirmary.

…

"Oshitari!" Gakuto shouted as they all ran faster, fearing that Oshitari might also disappear like Ryoma. They ran past Kawamura, who was still on the floor of the lounge, and went up the 2nd floor to Oshitari's bedroom, that's when Jriou's bedroom door opened.

"I heard noises. Who was that? Who screamed?" He said sleepily as he looked at his fellow teammates. He looked up and saw Momo kicking open the door to Oshitari's room. "Huh?" Was the only reaction from Jirou. Kirihara approached him.

"Jirou-sempai, did you hear anyone come here?" Kirihara asked while looking around.

"Aside from you guys… all I heard was someone screaming." Jirou said while rubbing his eyes sleepily. The Hyotei members went into their comrade's room while Rikkadai and some of the Seigaku members crowded outside the door.

"Oi! Oshitari! Daijobu desu ka?" Gakuto asked his doubles partner shen he saw him was shivering a bit while pointing at something. Everyone looked at what he was pointing and saw a lump on the bed. Yukimura and Sanada stepped forward from behind the Hyotei people and they approached the bed to pull away the covers…

There were gasps of surprise as everyone saw what was under the blanket.

There on the bed, lying bloody, with clothes torn was…

"Echzen!/Echizen-kun! Ochibi! Brat!" Everyone said at the same time.

Ryoma was lying on the bed, his Seigaku jersey torn, and his capped ripped. His hair was messy and he was covered in blood. His head seemed to be bleeding too.

"Fuji, and Momoshiro" Tezuka said sternly, his eyes slightly wide.

Said boys nodded and without further instruction, theyran up to Ryoma. Fuji, whose were eyes open, wrapped Ryoma with the blankets in Oshitari's bed, and his own jersey just in case, while Momo moved forward and picked up the unconscious prodigy. Tezuka turned to look at Atobe who was looking on at Ryoma with surprise and suspicion.

"Atobe, sorry for the trouble, but can you help us take Echizen and Kawamura to the building?" Tezuka said while looking at his watch.

"Of course, ore-sama shall help." Atobe said with a frown as he regained his composure.

"We shall help too. Sanada, Jackal… can you help carry Kawamura-san?" Yukimura said looking at the two.

"Yes." Came their grave answers. Tezuka nodded as he led the way forward.

And soo they all went out of Oshitari's room, while Oshitari grabbed a nearby jacket and followed them outside, into the very cold night.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note: **Editing of Chapter 7! DONE!

**Chapter 7**

It was raining heavily as everyone got back to their dorms. It was 6:00 AM no use of going back to sleep, especially at a time when confusion and fear run about. The rest of the Seigaku team that were conscious decided to do some warm up to forget the past night's happenings, leaving Echizen, Inui, and Kaidoh in the dorm. Kawamura had woken up minutes ago.

While everyone was training, some of the Fudomine team along with their captain Tachibana and his sister, Ann came.

"Tezuka…" Tachibana said in greeting.

"Tachibana…" Tezuka replied with the same tone. Everyone sweat dropped. So this is what they mean by 'exchange of few words'.

"Neh! Where is the rest of your team?" Momo said looking around.

"We don't know, probably in the rest room. They just suddenly got sick or something." Kamio said shrugging, looking a bit worried.

"Must be something they ate… don't blame me… Kamio was the one who cooked dinner… he must be a horrible cook… good thing I was asleep… then I too would have-" Shinji said mumbling to himself again.

"URUSAI!" Kamio said popping a vein and kicking Shinji in the head. Everyone sweat dropped,

"Saa… Don't they remind you of someone from Rokakku?" Fuji said chuckling.

The whole day went by but only Kaidoh woke up. He was too scared (though he refused to show it) to go out or be left alone in a room while Ryoma and Inui were still unconscious. So Oishi had to take care of him, constantly telling him that everything was gonna be fine.

Night came and everyone went back to their rooms. It was Momo's turn to guard Ryoma and Inui, but after only 5 minutes he fell asleep. Shortly after that…. Ryoma woke up.

At first, the young golden-eyes boy was confused as to where he was. He looked at the sleeping Momo before he quietly made his way out of bed. Usually he would wake up his senior to ask what had happened but his thoughts were too preoccupied.

Thinking that maybe a glass of water could help clear his mind, the young freshman made his way out of the room.

While walking, Ryoma contemplated about his recent dream. After that mysterious dream, he had a sudden urge to scan the cemetery grounds. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the thought. However before long he found himself looking for a flashlight. After rummaging through the kitchen closets, he found a flashlight and slowly made his way out into the eerie night.

He slowly made his way to the cemetery just behind the Seigaku dormitory buildings.

The cemetery was silent. The creepy silence was everywhere. Ryoma walked past the graves fearlessly, however he could feel someone or something, breathing down is neck. Then at the worst possible moment when the breathing was getting nearer and nearer, the flashlight went dead.

The freshman frowned at his luck as he shook the object in his hand, forcing it to work. The shadows seemed to be darker and a lot more menacing with only the moon as his source of light. However the freshman stopped his actions when he felt the hair at the nape of his neck standing up. His eyes widened as he looked behind.

Suddenly, a long piercing scream broke the silence of the cold night as the sound of a flashlight dropping to the ground echoed throughout the cemetery….

* * *

Inui woke up with a start as he heard the last traces of the piercing scream from an unfamiliar being echo from outside. The data man held his head as though having a headache as he looked around. He got up unsteadily, wanting to wake the sleeping Momo. However he gasped in pain when suddenly he could hear several voices in his head…

_Help us…_

_Give us the boy…_

_Come now… if you want to live give him to us…_

_Help…please…!_

_GIVE HIM TO US!_

The data regular placed his hand on his head, trying to get rid of the voices. He groaned when they juset become louder. But he was distracted from the pain when suddenly the door of their room bursted open and a strong wind blew, knocking Inui to the wall due to an invisible force.

And through all this, Momo was still asleep, mumbling something about food…

* * *

Morning came, and everyone went to check on Inui and Ryoma.

"Tezuka, morning." Fuji said as he stepped out of his room. The captain nodded at him. "Are you going to check on Echizen and Inui?"

"Ah." Tezuka confirmed and Fuji smiled.

"I'll go with you." The tensai said as he walked beside the captain.

"Captain!Fujiko! Ohayo!" Eiji greeted when he and Oishi crossed paths with the strongest singles player of their team.

"We brought some food for Momo, and just incases for Echizen and Inui too." Oishi said as the four of them walked to the direction of the room the two were staying in.

"Maa… Kaidoh calm down." Came a voice that probably belonged to Kawamura. "It's okay, nothing's going to attack you during the morning."

"I-I'm not saying that something is going to attack-!" They heard Kaidoh stutter. "I'm not scared!"

"Yoh Kaidoh! Taka-san! Let's all visit Echizen and Inui!" Eiji called out to the two when they were in view. Kawamura nodded while Kaidoh looked away.

They all made their way to the room and when Kawamura opened the doors they were shocked into silence.

To their horror, they saw Inui in his bed, the sheets stained with blood and covered in scratches. The worst of his injuries was the injury in his head. His glasses crashed into pieces nearby. Before they can take in the shock of their surroundings the suddenly realized that their youngest kouhai was missing!

Oh, and Momo was still asleep…

"Momoshiro!" Tezuka said sternly. Momo snored louder.

"Oi! Momo! There's an all-you-caneat-buffet at the main building!" Kawamura shouted urgently into Momo's ear. Ofcourse with this statement, Momo woke up immediately.

"What! Where? All-you-can-eat-buffet, Igotdibsoneverything!" He said in one breath.

"Fssh… baka." Kaidoh said annoyed.

Amazingly, Momo ignored him and yawned

"So what's up? Where's the buffet?" Momo said looking around sleepily.

"Momoshiro…" Tezuka said again, alerting his presence to the slack-off teen.

"C-Captain! What-?" Momo said surprised as he gulped. Tezuka had that aura that made you feel that you did something wrong. Although in this case, Momo really did something wrong.

Oishi interrupted what Momo was about to say. "What happened to them?" He asked urgently and frantically while he and Kawamura were giving first-aid to Inui. "And where's Echizen?" He added.

Momo looked at them, clearly shocked as well. "W-what happened to him?" He said looking at Eiji.

"We don't know nya! That's why we're asking you!" The acrobat said in a fearful tone.

Then silence ensued in the room…


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note: **EDIT OF CHAPTER 8! DONE!

* * *

**Chapter 8**

"If only Inui was awake nya! He would know what happened!" Eiji said wailing while the others ran outside looking for any sign of their missing kouhai.

"Well, then WE can investigate in his place!" Momo said looking at the still trashed room. The others who were looking outside came back.

"So did you see any signs of Echizen?" Tezuka asked, his arms crossed. Oishi shook his head gravely and the other also had dejected looks on their faces. Tezuka looked at the others and they shrugged their shoulders, unknowing as well.

"Tezuka!" Fuji said looking at Tezuka, his eyes opened while pointing at some dirt on the floor. Momo, who was near Fuji, leaned closer to look at it.

"The wind must have blown it inside last night nya!" Eiji said looking at the half destroyed windows.

"Eiji-sempai, give me a magnifying glass!" Momo said seriously.

"Aye! Aye! Captain!" Eiji said rushing off and getting a magnifying glass which was conveniently on one of the drawers, for Momo. "Here…" He handed the magnifying glass to his fellow player. When Momo took a closer look at the dirt, Fuji leaned closer to take a look as well.

"This looks familiar…" Fuji said putting a hand on his chin. "Neh, Momo, you were the one who carried Echizen when he was found unconscious in the Hyotei building right?"

"Ah, yes… Fuji-sempai. Why do you ask?" Momo said with an eyebrow raised.

"Did his clothes have the same dirt as this?" Fuji said taking a sample in his finger. He took a sniff.

"Now that I think about it… Yes, I think it's the same!" Momo said puzzled. Everyone gasped except Tezuka and Fuji (and of course Inui since he is unconscious).

"W-wait… H-how can you be sure?" Oishi asked them as he looked at Fuji then at Momo and the back again.

"W-well… the stains on Echizen's clothes and the soil here have the same reddish kind of hue mixed with brown. And they have the same scent as well…" Momo said frowning.

"H-hey," Kawamura began uncertainly. "Could this be the same soil that's in the cemetery?" Kawamura said fearfully.

There was silence.

"W-What?" Eiji and Kaidoh said at the same time in a scared tone.

"If what Kawamura says is true then it all makes sense." Oishi said worry in his voice. "Right Fuji?" Fuji nodded in agreement.

"B-but how does it make sense?" Momo said looking around at the seniors.

"Everything that happened up until now has always led to that cemetery." Tezuka said quietly his face stoic as he thought about what this meant.

"Which means…?" Eiji asked fearing the answer that came.

"Which means… we have no choice but to give the cemetery a visit..." Fuji said his sapphire eyes open.

There was silence once more. Momo was the first to recover of this shocking announcement.

"When will we…?" He asked.

"Tomorrow night…" Fuji replied in a serious tone.

"B-But… why does it have to be at night Fuji-sempai?" Kaidoh asked fearfully. It was Momo who answered.

"Because strange things happen at night, mamushi! We can get more clues at night!" Momo said to the viper.

"And also because, we couldn't possibly do it during the day…" Oishi said to himself. "We have our tennis practices in the morning and the afternoon. If we don't show up, the other schools will get suspicious and we don't want them involved."

"Calm down guys…" Kawamura said as Momo and Kaidoh started arguing again. "We'll discuss later in the afternoon…"

Oishi nodded and added "We have to go to the main building to get some breakfast. The other teams will be suspicious if we don't turn up on time."

Everyone agreed on this and for safety measures, decided to move Inui in a windowless room. Since the room had no windows the light had to be turned on since it was so dark. After making sure Inui had no more injuries to bandage up, everyone filed out of the room except Eiji. It was Eiji's turn to guard Inui.

"I'll bring you some food Eiji." Oishi said waving at his doubles partner.

"Waffles nya!" Eiji called at Oishi's retreating figure. When the others were out of view, Eiji sat down on a chair next to Inui's bed and took a comic book to pass the time.

Several minutes later… someone knocked on the door. Eiji opened it.

"Oishi!" Eiji shouted happily. But no one was there. Eiji took a step outside. The lights in the room begun to falter… Eiji was about to turn around when suddenly the door was shut in his face. Eiji was locked outside.

"Open the door nya!" Eiji was torn on the decisions to either run for help or stay to make sure Inui was safe. Loud footsteps could be heard inside the room.

"Inui!" Eiji said tearfully. Almost immediately the door opened and Eiji tumbled forward and then back in fright. His eyes widened as he fell back and fainted from what he saw…

The room, from the ceiling to the floor, was covered in bloody footprints… of a baby.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary:**_The Seiagku regulars were invited by Atobe Keigo to have a self-training tennis camp along with other schools. Unable to decline, everyone started packing for the said event. Little did they know that it will be one of the scariest events of their lives…_

**Author's note: **Where have I been? I have been on a writing training, tell me whether I have improved or not! I'm also done re-editing the chapters of this fanfic!

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Kiyosumi Senoku, known as lucky Sengoku from Yamabuki, was walking around with a concentrated expression.

"Ah! I hate this training camp! Why aren't there any cute girls around?" Sengoku whined to himself.

"W-Wait! S-Sengoku-senmpai!" Came a panting voice. Sengoku looked around.

"Ah, Taichi what's up?" Sengoku said with a smile.

"Sengoku-sempai! Please don't go running off like that, desu!" Taichi Dan said with a frown. "Besides, we're here to train you shouldn't be off looking for girls, desu!"

"Ah, gome-gomen!" Sengoku said as he cheerfully patted the first year on the head. However, he was distracted when he saw the Seigaku players passing by. "Oi, Taichi that's-"

Dan looked up to what Sengoku was looking at. "Ah! It's the Seigaku team, desu!" Dan said, his eyes sparkling in delight but then his eyes widened ion confusion. "A-Arre? Where's Echizen-san?"

"Hm, maybe that introvert decided he didn't like to eat with the other tennis payers." Sengoku shrugged. Dan frowned at this as he continued to watch the Seigaku members.

"They seem troubled, desu." Dan said absently. "And Inui-san and Kikumaru-san aren't with them, desu!"

"Maybe they're sick or something?" Sengoku suggested with a shrug. "A sickness has been going around lately. First it was with Fudomine… they thought it was food poisoning… and now even our own team has caught wind of it."

"Poor Kentarou-san and Masami-san, desu." Dan said with a worried frown. "Anyway Sengoku-sempai! We should get going!" And as he said that he grabbed Sengoku by the shirt and tried dragging him towards the main building.

"Hai… hai…" Sengoku said with a sigh as he went with the young freshman. However he couldn't help but give a side-way glance to Seigaku. His eyes narrowed suspiciously before he turned around.

Meanwhile… with Seigaku

"Tezuka, we should search for Echizen as soon as we can." Fuji said as his cerulean eyes opened seriously. "I have a bad feeling about what's going to happen soon."

"Ah." Tezuka agreed.

"Maybe we can ask the other teams if they'd seen him?" Momo suggested.

"But what do we do if they ask us if he's gone missing?" Oishi asked worriedly.

"We can tell them that when we woke up he was gone." Kawamura said and then he frowned. "Or we can just tell them the truth that he's missing."

"Fsssh… And what do we say?" Kaidoh said as he hissed. "That he was kidnapped by some weird spirits?"

"We'll look more into this matter before we can say any further." Tezuka said firmly and then he looked at his teammates. "Don't let your guard down."

"Ah!" Everyone said as they all went into the main building.

* * *

Kisarazu Ryou was talking with his twin brother Kisarazu Atsushi when the Seigaku team entered. All of the tennis players stopped talking for a second as they watched them. Seigaku, was after all the team that beat them all.

"Oi, Saeki…" Ryou said nudging the white-haired vice-captain of the Rokkaku team. Saeki Kojiro looked up and smiled as he saw the seigaku team. He immediately approached his childhood friend, Fuji.

"Fuji!" Saeki called out as he smiled but then he faltered when he saw the serious look on the genius' face.

Seeing his childhood friend, Fuji automatically closed his eyes and dropped the serious look. "Saeki, it has been a long time."

"A-Ah…" Saeki said and then he got to the point as he frowned. "Is there something wrong?"

Fuji continued smiling but said nothing. Saeki frowned at that. Usually, when his friend said nothing it mean that something was indeed wrong.

"Fuji I-" However he was interrupted when the players from St. Rudolph came up.

"Ah, Fuji Shusuke…" Mizuki said as he smiled at the genius. Fuji's smile dropped at the sight of the St. Rudolph strategist. "I see you've finally showed up, now we can have that rematch-"

"Ah, Yuuta!" Fuji said as he shifted his attention to his younger brother.

"Aniki." Yuuta said in acknowledgement to the older sibling. Fuji smiled at him brightly, while beside Yuuta, Mizuki twitched in annoyance.

"I see that you have finally arrived." Tezuka said seriously.

"Yeah, most of us just got here today." Kaneda said quietly. "The other teams just arrived here today too."

"We noticed." Momo said while Kaidoh hissed.

"Oh! It's the snake-guy!" Wakato Hiroshi said when he saw his former rival Kaidoh. He approached the Seigaku regular with a smirk. "So? Want to have a rematch with me?"

"I see your fan club isn't there." Kaidoh said coolly. "You think you can win? Fsshhhhh…"

Wakato was about to say something but then he was interrupted by an overzealous first year.

"Ah it's the Seigaku team!" Kentaro Aoi, captain of the Rokkaku team said as he approached them cheerfully. "Hey guys! Long time no see!"

"Kentaro! Yoh!" Momo greeted. Kawamura nodded politely.

"Kentaro-san…" Oishi said with a polite smile.

"Momoshiro-san! Oishi-san and Kawamura-san as well!" Kentaro said with a smile. He looked at the Seigaku regulars one by one but then his smile dropped and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Arre? Where's Echizen-kun?"

At the mention of their youngest member, everyone froze. Kawamura and Momoshiro exchanged uneasy looks. Fuji's eyes opened seriously, Tezuka's frown deepened, Kaidoh's eyes shadowed, and Oishi looked uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" Came a serious voice. They looked up and saw Shinjou Reiji, the master of Deep Impulse. He had the usual frown on his face. "Did something happen to Echizen?"

The Seigaku regulars were quiet as they contemplated what to say. Almost everyone who had gathered around them was looking at Tezuka, since he was the captain.

"When we woke up today, we found that Echizen wasn't at his bed." Texuka said, not delving in deeper to what really happened. He didn't mention what a mess the room was in when they came in.

"Did you try looking for him?" Yuuta asked sharply.

Fuji frowned. Everyone looked all over their dorm but they didn't find him. They even looked at the cemetery and the forest surrounding the dorm. They wanted to continue searching around the training grounds but they had to show up at the main building for breakfast.

"Maybe he went for a walk?" Atsushi suggested as he joined the conversation with his twin brother.

"Knowing Echizen-kun, that's possible." Saeki said but he couldn't help but think that there was more to the story.

"And where're Kikumaru-san and Inui-san?" Kentaro asked as he looked at the regulars.

"He should still be knocked out from yesterday's ordeal." Yanagi Renji said as he and the Rikkaidai team approached.

"Knocked out?" Everyone murmured in surprise.

"Yanagi." Fuji said as he looked seriously at the 'professor'. Yanagi Renji looked at them with a frown.

"Fuji, we came here today to ask about what happened yesterday." Sanada said as he stepped out from behind Renji.

"Seeing as we helped you, we have the right to know right?" Kirihara said as he licked his lips.

"What are they talking about Fuji?" Saeki asked as he looked at his friend.

"Calm down Kirhara." Yukimura said as he placed a hand on his teammate's shoulder. He looked at Sanada and Renji. "We can talk about this later…"

"According to my data, we should ask them now or they'll find a way to wiggle out of it." Renji said under his breath. At this point, everyone suddenly got very noisy.

"Neh, Tezuka-san, tell us what happened to Echizen." Kentaro said frowning.

"Aniki, how can I challenge Echizen when I don't know where he is and what happened?" Yuuta said as he looked at his brother.

"Perhaps we should talk about this with Hanamura-sensei…" Shinjou Reiji murmured.

"Hm, maybe Echizen ran away from Seigaku because he got tired of you all? And maybe he's looking for a new tennis team?" Mizuki said as he twirled a lock of his bangs. "I should extend an invitation."

"Fuji, if there's a problem we can help you…" Saeki said to the genius.

But then everyone suddenly became quiet when there was a sound of someone snapping their fingers. Everyone looked to the front and they saw Atobe with his hand raised in the air.

"Quiet." He said as he put his hand down and a butler behind him offered him a glass of juice. "You were all courteously invited here by me and the least you can do is not cause a disturbance so early in the morning."

"We're sorry about that Atobe." Yukimura said to the captain of the Hyotei team.

"I'll take responsibility for my team's actions." Kajimoto Takihisa, captain of the Josei Shonen tennis team said curtly.

Kentaro looked at the two captains and he scratched his cheek uncertainly before bowing. "G-Gomenasai!"

Tezuka nodded his head at Atobe's direction as an apology. Akazawa bowed at Atobe's direction.

"Good." Atobe said and then he gestured to the long tables on the side of the room. It was filled with different varieties of food. "Now, please proceed to eating your breakfast and afterwards do what you like. Ore-sama suggests that you train because by the end of this week we will be holding practice matches and ore-sama wishes to be entertained."

There was a resounding cheer throughout the room as almost everyone began divvying up their opponents, the matter earlier completely forgotten. The others began heading their way to the food table eager to eat so that they could started on training immediately.

"Huh, everyone in this building is a tennis freak." Came a familiar voice. The whole Seigaku team turned to look at who said that.

"Ryuzaki-sensei!/Coach!" They said at the same time.

"Yoh." Ryuzaki said as she crossed her arms.

"Sensei, did you just arrive today?" Tezuka asked quietly.

"Ah, I came here with Hanamura-sensei, Oji, and the coach of the Hyotei team." Ryuzaki said as she looked at her members. But then her eyes narrowed when she saw that three were not there.

"Heh, as expected of Sumire-chan… You noticed that something's wrong…" Fuji said as he opened his eyes seriously.

"Fuji." Tezuka said sternly.

"A-Ano, sensei what about the tennis teams from the Kansai regions? Weren't they invited as well?" Oishi asked trying to distract her.

"Ah, they're much farther so they'll be here in a few days." Ryuzaki said as she looked at the guilty faces of the members. "I see that there's something you have to tell me but seeing as I'll be busy for the next couple of days I won't ask about it. I hope you resolve whatever problem that happened soon."

And with that, the coach turned around to join the other coaches on their tables.

"Ha…" Momo said with a sigh. "That got my heart beating like crazy."

"Anyway, let's not think about this for now. We should all get some breakfast." Kawamura said. "We can start looking for Echizen afterwards."

"Eiji is waiting for us to come back as well so we should hurry." Oishi said and Fuji nodded as the Seigaku team made its way to the table. However, the table was surrounded by a bunch of hungry tennis players.

"Why? Why is the food here so delicious?" Itsuki Marehiko said as steam came out of his nose. He turned to look at Kajimoto who was beside him. "Neh, nande (why)?"

Kajimoto sweat dropped. "Uhm, I don't know."

"Neh, he's weird." Youhei said as he looked at his twin.

"Yeah, definitely weird." Kouhei said nodding.

"At this rate we're going to be at least here for another hour." Oishi said.

"Mou! I'm hungry! Can't you guys just step aside for a sec?" Momo called out. Everyone by the table stopped their movements and looked at Momo.

"NO WAY!" And then everyone went back to getting their food.

"What do we do now?" Kawamura asked Oishi who shrugged.

"Fuji." Tezuka said to the tensai beside him.

"Ah…" Fuji said as his eyes opened seriously.

Several seconds later…

A lot of screams were heard as everyone around the table bailed and ran away as far as they can. When they were gone, the only people left were the Seigaku regulars and several unconscious tennis players.

"Hey, can we open our eyes now?" Momo asked.

"Yeah." Fuji said as he closed his eyes. Everyone opened their eyes and looked around.

"Whoa, what happened?" Momo asked.

"Are they going to be alright?" Oishi asked as he kneeled down to look at those who were unconscious. Some were even foaming on their mouths.

"They'll be fine. They might start peeing blood for a few days though." Fuji said with a smile. Kaidoh shivered in fright while Momo and the rest (except Tezuka) sweat dropped in fear.

"Let's hurry. Everyone get some breakfast. Oishi you carry Kikumaru's." Tezuka said firmly. The Seigaku captain turned to look at the teams who were staring at them sternly. Everyone immediately turned back to eating.

_Scary… _Everyone sweat dropped.

"Hm…" Oishi said as he looked at the varity of food.

"Something wrong Oishi-sempai?" Momo asked as he scarfed down on the sandwiches while looking for more to eat.

"Eiji said he wanted waffles right?" Oishi said as he looked down at the empty plate of waffles. "But there are no more waffles what should I get him?"

"Anything should be fine right?" Momo said as he grabbed some pancakes.

"Ah well, you can call him Oishi if you're worried about it." Fuji said as he fished out his cellphone and gave it to the vice captain.

"That's a good idea." Oishi said as he quickly dialed Eiji's number which he had long memorized. The vice-captain patiently listened as the phone rang on the other end. Suddenly there was a tell-tale click saying that someone picked up.

"Ah Eiji, it's me I know you said waffles but-" However Oishi stopped talking and automatically everyone turned to look at him.

"Oihsi-sempai?" Kaidoh asked. Oishi put up a hand.

"Eiji? Eiji? Hello? Are you there Eiji?" Oishi asked frantically. By this time, almost everyone in the room was looking at their direction. Fuji's eyes opened as he watched Oishi.

"Eiji-?" However the vice-captain was cut off when he suddenly heard something from the other line. Oishi's face paled and his eyes widened as his grip on the phone slackened. The phone was about to fall but thankfully, Fuji was able to catch it.

The tennis genius immediately put it again his ear. "Hello Eiji-?" However he was cut off when he heard the telltale click that said the other person hanged up. Fuji put down his phone as he stared at his teammates in confusion.

But then everyone was snapped out of their trance when Oishi suddenly dashed off leaving them stunned.

"Oishi!" Tezuka called out but the vice-captain did not turn back.

"Eiji…" Fuji said as he also ran after Oishi.

"Wait! Fuji!" Kawamura called out.

"Fssshhhh…" Kaidoh hissed in confusion. Momo turned to Tezuka.

"Buchou?" He asked. The former Seigaku pillar nodded his head.

"Let's follow them." And with that, the four of them ran after their two co-players. Just as they rushed to the door, it opened revealing the Fudomine team.

Tachibana's eyes widened as Kawamura, Kaidoh, and Momoshiro passed by him.

"Oi, Momoshiro!" Kamio called out when Momo accidentally bumped shoulders with him.

Tachibana turned to look at the last person. "Tezuka what-?"

"Sorry, but we have to get going…" Tesuka said curtly before rushing out of the door.

"What the…" Kamio said while behind him, Shinji mumbled some things.

"Hm, Seigaku is acting weird again." Atobe said as he approached the Fudomine team.

"Atobe, what was that just now?" Tachibana asked the Hyotei king. The Monkey King just shrugged.

"Saa… who knows." Atobe said with a casual shrug.

"But we're going to find out." Oshitari said as his glasses glinted. Behind him, the Rikkaidai team exchanged looks.

"We're going to find out too of course." Kirihara said as he put his arms behind his head. "Right captain?"

Yukimura looked at the second year before he looked at the door. "Maybe…"

* * *

**Author's note: **Sorry, I know that it's short and didn't have much scary experience at all but I wanted this chapter to focus on the other team's worry for a while to build it up to the climax. And I know everyone's been waiting for it long… *sigh*


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